where am i going wrong?

B

brooklyn07

0
Hi All

I joined the gym around 3 weeks ago - a trainer there wrote out a program for me which consists of the following:-

15 minutes on the cross trainer

15 minutes on the treadmill (only 5 of those minutes is jogging)

15 minutes on the bike

10 minutes swim

10 minutes on the weights for my thighs and my arms.

Also in the evening when i get home after work i go for an 8 mile bike ride.

My diet is usually:

breakfast - shreddies with semi skimmed milk

Lunch - wholemeal bread with one slice of ham, lettuce, cucumber

Dinner - grilled steak with lots of vegetables and a small jacket potato, home made sauce from fat free fromage frais, worcester sauce, instant stock,

Snacks - apple, banana, pineapple slices

I'm 5'4" and weigh 140 pounds.

I've been doing this route for 3 weeks now and have not lost a single pound, i havent lost any inches either but have actually put ON an inch around my waist!!!

Can someone please point out where i am going wrong please :confused4:
 
probably too much shock to the system.

you could be under-eating to (starvation will cause weight gain or stagnation, not weightloss).

you're not eating enough protein either, and I don't see any healthy fats listed.

10 minutes of weights for arms and thighs isn't great either. I think your 'trainer' wasn't particularly interested in giving you a program to follow. you shouldn't need to bounce between 3 pieces of cardio equipment for starters.
 
Exercising for an hour isn't going to a whole hell of alot for you at this point either in my opion. I'm a firm believer in intensity over duration for fat loss.
 
malkore said:
probably too much shock to the system.

you could be under-eating to (starvation will cause weight gain or stagnation, not weightloss).

you're not eating enough protein either, and I don't see any healthy fats listed.

10 minutes of weights for arms and thighs isn't great either. I think your 'trainer' wasn't particularly interested in giving you a program to follow. you shouldn't need to bounce between 3 pieces of cardio equipment for starters.
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I worked it out yesterday and most of my days meals are coming to 1,400 calories in total - is this enough? too much?

I dont think the trainer particularly knew what she was onabout but then again i know nothing!

What would you suggest that i do instead of the routine that i already have?
 
Even with all of that cardio work, you are building lean muscle mass. Muscle weight is heavier than what you are trying to lose.

Vary your workout. If you do the same thing every workout, your body will build up a tolerance and the gains will slow or stop.

Increase the weight lifting. The added muscle will burn more calories while the body is resting.

A lot of these so called trainers at storefront gyms are nothing more than people that exercise. He may not be a certified trainer. If not, get a new trainer.
 
and all certified trainers aren't equal. some certs you can get on a weekend seminar. other certs are on par with 15-20 college credit hours of study and preparation.
 
VS Tyrant said:
Exercising for an hour isn't going to a whole hell of alot for you at this point either in my opion. I'm a firm believer in intensity over duration for fat loss.
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Long term studies have fairly conclusively shown that at around the 6 month mark, fat loss is statistically the same for both HIIT and steady state exercise.

So the main argument between the two really becomes a personal preference: which do you prefer and which do you have the time for. Though HIIT does provide cardiovascular training at and above the lactic acid threshold, which could be beneficial for some people.
 
brooklyn07 said:
I worked it out yesterday and most of my days meals are coming to 1,400 calories in total - is this enough? too much?

I dont think the trainer particularly knew what she was onabout but then again i know nothing!

What would you suggest that i do instead of the routine that i already have?
Click to expand...

I think that you should look for a resting metabolic rate estimate calculator (they're all over the internet). One that includes a daily activity estimate would be helpful as well. It's not a completely accurate method, but gives you a ballpark figure to shoot for. A healthy rate of fat loss is 1-2 lbs a week. That comes out to 500-1000 calorie deficit a day. You should typically eat enough calories to cover your resting metabolic weight, and then create your caloric deficit through your estimated daily activity and exercise.

Counting calories can be a real hassle though, and it's hard to stick with, so it might be a good alternative to simply keep a food log of what you've been eating and the potion sizes. Typically at a standard meal, 3 fist sized portions (meat, starch/grain, fruit/veg) is a good target, with a small snack (protein+carb) between breakfast and lunch and lunch and dinner. The log itself helps you to track your eating habits and allows you to identify any poor eating habits and what might be causing them, without having to count calories.
 
Agreed about steady state vs. HIII. Noteworthy, too, is that the "vary your workout" school of thought is a bit misleading. While variance may keep boredom at bay and be helpful for cardio, significant changes in weight training routines (ie, "Change your workout every time to keep the muscles guessing") can be counterproductive. I will cite an article when I'm home from work, but the basic premise is that if your CNS is constantly adapting to different physical stress, it becomes harder to build muscle. The general rule of thumb is change a routine every eight weeks, not every workout.
 
Of course hiit and steady state would be about the same at 6 months, more than likely a result of you being in good enough shape to maintain a high level of work for that steady state exercise. If you lower your work effort in order to maintain that steady state then it doesn't work you as hard, thus not taxing your system enough to boost your metabolism throughout the day and so on and so forth.

That being said, the 6 month theory doesn't apply to this guy or anybody else that is looking to start a program. Chances are that if you've been doing hiit for 6 months you probably wouldn't be in a situation to ask "what am I doing wrong".
 
VS Tyrant said:
Of course hiit and steady state would be about the same at 6 months, more than likely a result of you being in good enough shape to maintain a high level of work for that steady state exercise. If you lower your work effort in order to maintain that steady state then it doesn't work you as hard, thus not taxing your system enough to boost your metabolism throughout the day and so on and so forth.

That being said, the 6 month theory doesn't apply to this guy or anybody else that is looking to start a program. Chances are that if you've been doing hiit for 6 months you probably wouldn't be in a situation to ask "what am I doing wrong".
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That's not true at all. The 6 month research is applicable to untrained and undertrained individuals. What happens is that SS groups are able to eventually maintain a higher intensity for longer periods of time, though intensity is still lower than the HIIT group, whereas the HIIT group is able to increase intensity, but not duration. It's sort of a yo-yo effect in that the SS group ends up losing as much weight over the 6 mos (and beyond) as the HIIT group. The HIIT group loses more initially, but the SS group catches up. Past that point, the research indicates that given a similar volume of training (days/week) both HIIT and SS end up being able to lose comprable amounts of fat mass. So
 
illiniphase4 said:
What happens is that SS groups are able to eventually maintain a higher intensity for longer periods of time, though intensity is still lower than the HIIT group, whereas the HIIT group is able to increase intensity, but not duration.
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Pretty much what I was saying.
 
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